Halo: Unleashed
by UltimateDurzan
Summary: Eons ago, the ancient race known as the Forerunners created 7 massive space-stations known as the Halo Array... Before they were mysteriously wiped out. Now, thousands of years later, two factions in a bloody holy war stumble across Halo Alpha, the commanding ring in the Halo Array.


**Prologue:**

**Echoes of the Past:**

* * *

_…For by Their own hands,_

_will their fate will be revealed._

_By Their folly, their fate will be sealed._

_By Their hands, all life will burn._

_By the Fallen Hand shall all be destroyed._

_But, with Their sacrifice, a new age shall begin._

_By Their own hands, all will fall,_

_By Their designs, all things will be taken._

_Their own hands shall knowingly,_

_pull the trigger,_

_But, by Their hands,_

_Everything will be restored,_

_And hidden in the Darkness_

_their legacy will be remembered…_

**-Selections from a Prophecy about the Forerunners. Date of Writing: Unknown. Suspected to be written during the Forerunner Era. Author is Unknown. Data found, suppressed, and hidden, by the High Prophet Regret.**

* * *

_Year: Approximately 65 Million B.C. (human standard time)_

_Location: Halo Alpha. Somewhere in the outer rim…_

Professor Jason ran through the dark passages, his plasma rifle at the ready. He had to reach the control room so he could activate the Halos. He had designed the Halo Array for this very purpose, and today he was going to finish it. As far as he knew, he was the last free living Forerunner in the galaxy, and if there were others out there, then they would all be destroyed within minutes anyway. Everything was ready, the specimens of various, plants, animals, bacteria, and other life forms stored in cryogenic hibernation deep within the bowels of Halo Alpha, and the other rings in the Array, just waiting to be planted after the death of innumerable lives. With the whereabouts of the Ark lost, the only way to activate the array was activate it manually from one of the Rings. If only he knew where the blasted Ark vanished to, then he could've saved at least a few hundred of his people. I guess the Prophecy was true after all, He thought, by our own hands was our fate revealed, and by our own hands will our fate be sealed. We awakened the Flood, and now with our dying breath, we will destroy the Flood. At least part of that prophecy rings true… I wonder what the rest of it means… never mind, I probably will never find out.

He sighed in relief as he reached what he recognized as the central control room for Halo Alpha. The door opened with an audible whoosh as he entered the room.

"Name?" a computerized voice asked.

"Professor Jason R. Stutsman, Creator of the Ark. Clearance Level: A-10. Password: Impending-Doom-X-Alpha-12," the forerunner professor replied. The room hummed for a moment, and then control room brightened as the hundreds of digital blue control panels activated. The voice spoke again. "Password accepted. Welcome Professor Jason."

Without warning, a group of small Flood parasites pounced on his back, and began to swarm over them, biting him and burrowing into his skin. The professor began to writhe and scream in agony as the parasites did their deadly work. He fell to the ground, dropping his plasma rifle. In a last ditch effort of will, he raised his head and gasped. "Computer… Direct Orders… Activate… The Halo… Array. Activate all Sentinels… Cleanse all Halos of all creatures Infested by the Flood… If at all possible… Or at least prevent… them from escaping. Once the galaxy is safe… launch all… suspended life forms… Initiate Protocol Last Resort."

The Professor fell back to the ground dying, but the computer responded with acknowledgement to the dying Forerunner's words. The Halo's AI transmitted the order to the other 6 Halos, and within minutes, a beam of intense energy burst throughout the galaxy, wiping out all life…

The Sentinel's lights blazed at it reactivated in response to the EAI's promptings. It had orders to carryout, and would see that no Flood would escape the Ring alive. "Sentinel, Assigned Name: Guilty Spark 343, activating. Checking system… All System's Functional. Assuming control of Halo Alpha…"

Guilty Spark 343 briefly reviewed its latest orders, given by the late professor and modified by Halo Alpha's emergency AI. Protocol Last Resort had been activated and the orders could only be pulled back by a direct order from the Ark itself or by Direct Order from a Forerunner on Halo Alpha.

_To all Halo installations:_

_Orders directly from Halo Alpha,_

_All Sentinels activate, and all EAI's are to be put on standby. Launch all life form specimens into the galaxy 3 weeks after initial fire, but keep a specimen of each species in hibernation in the event of another firing of the Array. Prevent any Flood left on the rings from escaping alive. If possible, eliminate all organisms infected with the Flood parasite on all Halos. Keep small flood specimens for study, in suspended animation, and transmit all information gathered to the Ark and Halo Alpha. If any Flood manages to escape from Halo Alpha, then activate the Halo array again, and repeat orders until further orders are sent from either the Ark, or Halo Alpha._

Now that Guilty Spark was reactivated, there was no need for the Emergency AI to remain functional, and as such Guilty Spark had promptly ordered the EAI to remain at standby. The Sentinel had work to do and orders to fulfill; it was not just going to sit there. It had a job to do.


End file.
